Driver Questioned In Connection With Deadly Canal Crash

(Source: CBS4) A car is pulled out of a NW Miami-Dade canal after one person died and two others were rescued.

NW MIAMI-DADE (CBSMiami) – The Florida Highway Patrol is questioning a person in connection with a deadly canal crash in Northwest Miami-Dade.

Tuesday, a Toyota with three people inside was heading south on Okeechobee Road just after midnight when it may have been sideswiped near the Florida Turnpike Extension. The driver lost control and plunged into a roadside canal.

FHP troopers found an abandoned and damaged GMC Envoy parked about a quarter mile from canal.

FHP officials say deputies have found the driver of the SUV. She is from the Naples-area and will only confirm they are questioning someone in connection with the accident.

The driver of the Toyota, 50-year-old Gilberto Duenas, died in the accident.

His nephew Dager Duenas Gonzalez and his nephew’s wife, Ladys, were able to make it out of the car to shore.

Gonzalez said his uncle, who came here on a raft from Cuba in 1994, worked as a tow truck driver. He added that he was a hard worker and a good father to his four children.

“He was a tremendous person, he was a very hard worker,” said Duenas cousin Noel Duenas. “I’d like to find who’s responsible because the kids are fatherless.”

If you have any information about this case, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS (8477).